Due to exchange soon on a garden flat in Lytchett Matravers. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they report fully on Monday. What should I be looking out for?

Your report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Lytchett Matravers should include some of the following:

• Setting out your rights in relation to the communal areas in the building.By way of example, does the lease grant a right of way over an accessway or staircase?
• Do you need to have carpet in the flat or are you allowed wood flooring?
• You must be told what counts as a Nuisance in the lease
• Ground rent - how much and when you need to pay, and also know whether this is subject to change
• You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
• I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required
• The landlord’s rights to access the flat you be made aware that your landlord has rights of access and I know how much notice s/he must provide.

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Lytchett Matravers. Conveyancing and Halifax mortgage organised. I have received a letter from someone saying they have taken over the freehold. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1995. The conveyancing solicitor in Lytchett Matravers who acted for me is not around.What should I do?

The first thing you should do is contact HMLR to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is indeed the new freeholder. There is no need to instruct a Lytchett Matravers conveyancing firm to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for £3. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful freeholder, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

I am employed by a long established estate agent office in Lytchett Matravers where we have experienced a number of leasehold sales put at risk due to short leases. I have been given contradictory information from local Lytchett Matravers conveyancing firms. Can you shed some light as to whether the seller of a flat can instigate the lease extension process for the buyer?

As long as the seller has been the owner for at least 2 years it is possible, to serve a Section 42 notice to commence the lease extension process and assign the benefit of the notice to the purchaser. The benefit of this is that the buyer need not have to sit tight for 2 years for a lease extension. Both sets of lawyers will agree to form of assignment. The assignment has to be done prior to, or at the same time as completion of the disposal of the property.

An alternative approach is to extend the lease informally by agreement with the landlord either before or after the sale. If you are informally negotiating there are no rules and so you cannot insist on the landlord agreeing to grant an extension or transferring the benefit of an agreement to the purchaser.

Can you provide any advice for leasehold conveyancing in Lytchett Matravers with the aim of expediting the sale process?

• Much of the delay in leasehold conveyancing in Lytchett Matravers can be bypassed where you instruct lawyers as soon as your agents start advertising the property and ask them to put together the leasehold information needed by the buyers conveyancers.
• In the event that you altered the property did you need the Landlord’s approval? Have you, for example installed wooden flooring? Most leases in Lytchett Matravers state that internal structural alterations or addition of wooden flooring require a licence from the Landlord approving such changes. If you dont have the approvals to hand do not contact the landlord without contacting your solicitor before hand.
• Some Lytchett Matravers leases require Landlord’s consent to the sale and approval of the buyers. If this applies to your lease, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain financial (bank) and professional references. Any bank reference will need to confirm that the buyers are able to meet the annual service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the service charge figures so that they can pass this information on to the buyers or their lawyers.
• If you have had any disputes with your landlord or managing agents it is very important that these are resolved before the property is put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be concerned about purchasing a flat where there is an ongoing dispute. You will have to accept that you will have to discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to completion of the sale. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal particulars of the dispute to the purchasers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic rather than ongoing.
• If you have the benefit of shareholding in the freehold, you should ensure that you hold the original share certificate. Obtaining a new share certificate can be a lengthy formality and delays many a Lytchett Matravers conveyancing deal. Where a new share certificate is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

When it comes to leasehold conveyancing in Lytchett Matravers what are the most frequent lease problems?

Leasehold conveyancing in Lytchett Matravers is not unique. Most leases are unique and legal mistakes in the legal wording can result in certain sections are wrong. The following missing provisions could result in a defective lease:

• Repairing obligations to or maintain parts of the building
• Insurance obligations
• Clauses dealing with recovering service charges for expenditure on the building or common parts.
• Service charge per centages that don't add up correctly leaving a shortfall

You could encounter a problem when selling your property if you have a defective lease as they can affect a potential buyer’s ability to obtain a mortgage. Nationwide Building Society, The Mortgage Works, and Barclays Direct all have express conveyancing instructions when it comes to what is expected in a lease. If a mortgage lender believes that the lease is defective they may refuse to grant the mortgage, obliging the buyer to withdraw.

Leasehold Conveyancing in Lytchett Matravers - Sample of Queries before buying